Archive for the 'Doheny Blues Festival' Tag Under 'Soundcheck' Category

Managed to get from Fullerton to Dana Point in time to see most of the new Tedescchi Trucks Band at the Doheny Blues Festival, who are positively smokin' an hour into their set just off the shore at Doheny State Beach. But backstage -- and, I presume, elsewhere on site -- there's a poster for something we had heard was coming: the return of Doheny Days to this same location, Sept. 10-11, after several years away.

Slated to appear: Ben Harper, G. Love & Special Sauce, Donavon Frankenreiter, JJ Grey & Mofro (sweet!) and Katchafire, with more to be added, I imagine. We'll have a proper post with prices and details soon enough. My guess is that that's one day, with another lineup to come for Day 2? We shall see.

(P.S.: Two minutes after I posted this, I looked down ... and realized the woman lounging in front of me is holding a program with the same ad. So yeah, word is out.)

Even longtime attendees of the annual Doheny Blues Festival in Dana Point should expect a few surprises from this year's bash on the beach, scheduled for Saturday (11 a.m.-9:30 p.m.) and Sunday (11 a.m.-8:30 p.m.).

This year's high-powered lineup is arguably the most exciting in the 14-year history of the event, thanks in part to the first O.C. gathering of the sprawling Experience Hendrix show, a nearly three-hour salute to the legendary guitarist featuring original Band of Gypsys bassist Billy Cox and an array of six-string progeny: Steve Vai, Jonny Lang, Robert Randolph, Eric Johnson, Ernie Isley, Brad Whitford of Aerosmith, Cesar Rosas and David Hidalgo of Los Lobos, Living Colour, Mato Nanji of Indigenous and more.

“In their 10 years of spreading the music of Jimi Hendrix, the Experience Hendrix Tour has never played a music festival until Doheny Blues,” boasts Rich Sherman, president of Omega Events, which produces the widely regard weekend of music. “It's going to be an amazing tribute to the man who many feel was the greatest guitarist of all time, and who certainly has ties to blues music.”

That all-star tribute closes out Saturday, while John Fogerty makes an eagerly-awaited return to the fest to headline on Sunday. Doheny Blues is also the only place to feature the original Blasters -- brothers Dave & Phil Alvin, Johnny Bazz, Bill Bateman and Gene Taylor -- in concert this year. (Presumably Dave and another player or two won't be on hand when the rockabilly revivalists open for Tiger Army at Pacific Amphitheatre on July 30.)

The lineup sure is strong enough so far for that to happen, even if who's playing which day hasn't been revealed yet. The big guns, however, are John Fogerty, who's been on a superb live run in recent years, and will really be a treat to see on the beach ... the newly unified Derek Trucks&Susan Tedeschi Band, can't wait to hear how that 11-member sprawl sounds ... Walter Trout, perhaps the sharpest guitar-slinger to emerge from Orange County since Dick Dale ... from Germany, B.B. & the Blues Shacks, a noted European festival favorite ...

And most interestingly of all, the Experience Hendrix tribute, which in addition to Band of Gypsys bassist Billy Cox boasts an all-star array of guests: Steve Vai, Jonny Lang, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, David Hidalgo & Cesar Rosas of Los Lobos, Living Colour (apparently all of them, not just Vernon Reid), Chris Layton (of Stevie Ray Vaughan's indispensable rhythm duo Double Trouble), pedal steel wizard Robert Randolph, Brad Whitford of Aerosmith, Ernie Isley (!), the Slide Brothers and Mato Nanji of Indigenous. Sounds like a full day's guitar-a-thon smashed into a couple hours.

General admission two-day passes are on sale now at a no-hidden-costs early-bird rate of $80. After March 14, the price goes up and service fees will apply. Single-day tickets -- presumably in the $50-$60 per day range -- go on sale March 15. Gold (for $360) and VIP ($180) weekend packages are also available, with single-day passes at that level also becoming available March 15.

June 6th, 2010, 6:52 pm by ROBERT KINSLER, FOR THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

I've seen Jonny Lang a number of times since the mid-'90s, but it didn't occur to me until he took the stage Saturday night in front of a capacity crowd at House of Blues Anaheim that I had always caught him outdoors at blues festivals. Those appearances were certainly memorable, but having now had this experience, there's little doubt in my mind that Lang is an artist best seen in an intimate club.

When he performs, whether singing or blazing away on lead guitar, he typically closes his eyes and uses the sound of the music and his own arsenal of talents to galvanize audiences. And at the Mouse House, Lang re-created much of the power featured on his latest Concord Records release (Live at the Ryman, from April), a concert recording boasting potent renditions of his best-known hits and his ever-burgeoning infusion of gospel, soul, R&B, even George Benson-styled jazz touches into his sound.

In "A Quitter Never Wins," he used the song's slow blues groove to sing some of his most expressive vocals of the night, trading high-reaching falsetto notes at the far end of his range with extensive lead guitar all in the service of a song focused on the reality of heartbreak.

Another highlight early on Saturday also came from that new live disc: "Bump in the Road" somehow blended Chicago blues with a bit of funk and soul, plus Lang's rich vocals recalling Michael McDonald. A crowd-pleasing reworking of Stevie Wonder's "Living for the City" was another welcome addition to the set, allowing several members of his long-time band to stretch out musically as well.

Lang ended his main set with a reworked version of "Lie to Me," with the 29-year-old Fargo native playing flamenco style for several minutes before his band returned to the stage to segue into the big-rocking version, enhanced by the star's Joe Cocker-esque vocals and speedy guitar playing.

More No Doubt is coming our way as the band has added two more dates at Gibson Amphitheater (July 27 and 28) and Aug. 2 at Verizon in Irvine. Ticketmaster only has these tickets listed at $90 and all shows are on sale now.

It's a fact that Doheny Blues Festival headliners B.B. King and Brian Setzer & the Nashvillians will take over Dana Point on May 16 & 17, but some new names were recently announced including Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Revue, Keb' Mo, Elvin Bishop and Ruthie Foster. Tickets are $80-$340 depending on the level of your passes and are on sale now at www.omegaevents.com.

Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale will strap in for a solo gig at the House of Blues Anaheim on June 7. Tickets are $25-$27.50. Also: Kate and Kacey, April 2, $10.50; Mary Mary, April 30, $15-$17.50; Doves, May 15, ticket prices are TBA. All shows go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Santa Ana's Galaxy Theatre will celebrate its grand reopening on March 21 with ... a Neil Diamond tribute band? Hot August Night will share the stage with Bob Seger tribute Turn the Page. All you need to get in is a $5 donation which will benefit Orange County High School of the Arts.

Over at the House of Blues in Hollywood, Kenny Wayne Shepherd will play a 15th anniversary show on April 18. Those tickets are $32.50-$35. Also: Atomic Punks' early Van Halen Tribute, April 3, $15-$17.50; Keith Emerson, Sweet, May 7, $30-$32.50; Sly & Robbie & the Taxi Gang, June 17, $15.50-$17.50. All shows go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Details about the 12th annual Doheny Blues Festival, May 16-17 at Doheny State Beach in Dana Point, are trickling out, and the headliners are strong and reliable: B.B. King, the 83-year- old Ambassador of the Blues, making his third appearance at the event ... Brian Setzer and the Nashvillains, in his/their debut at the beach bash .... and, most excellent if you ask me, a set from the Derek Trucks Band, undoubtedly spotlighting material from the guitar whiz's new album Already Free.

A total of 26 bands in all will appear on the fest's three stages. More of the lineup will be revealed in coming weeks. Discounted weekend passes, $80 for general admission, $160 for VIP and $340 for Gold, go on sale starting Friday, Feb. 20. After March 12, all prices go up $20. To find out what the VIP and Gold tickets get you, or for other general info, click here to visit the fest's official site.